Was the American Revolution Justified?

Was the American Revolution Justified?

Whether or not the American Revolution was justified is a difficult question to answer. The answer varies from person to person- there is no indisputable right or wrong. The American Revolution was born out of a rift between the British and the colonists, a disconnect. This distance magnified problems and reactions to problems that likely could have been solved with more time and patience. If the colonists had continued to act peacefully but persistently, demanding representation but doing so nonviolently, the need for an illogical war would not have existed.

By protesting against taxation without representation, the colonists brought a very important issue to light. British Parliament catered to and was controlled by a very specific group of people- the wealthy and white. By demanding representation, the colonists were threatening to overthrow the comfortably padded seats of the legislature. After all, if the colonists across the ocean had their opinions valued, the common Britons would begin to realize that they were not being represented well. The American Revolution was necessary to begin a new type of government. The government produced of the American Revolution was one the world had never seen before, because everyone’s opinion was valued and counted.

However, violence to solve other grievances was not strictly necessary. By boycotting taxes set by the British government, the colonists were able to have them repealed. This sets a precedence for resolving issues without violence. When the colonists initiated violence in the Boston Massacre and aggrandized their vexation with the Tea Act, the British Parliament saw that as an attack upon their authority